This invention relates to a bullet proof dress shirt useful in protecting the torso of a man or woman, particularly those persons engaged in military or law enforcement activities.
Prior bullet proof garments, while showing effectiveness against penetration of bullets, have been beset with problems of fit and comfort. Just as troublesome has been the problem of bulkiness in prior designs which has made it quite difficult to conceal the fact that one is wearing a bullet proof garment. The following patents are good examples of the problems attendant in prior art designs:
1. U.S. Pat. No. 4,079,464 to Roggin which shows a bullet proof vest with hook and pile connections on each side to allow easy fastening but lacks any adjustment in the shoulderneck area, and is quite bulky and uncomfortable to wear.
2. U.S. Pat. No. 3,973,275 to Blauer which shows a vest in which the front portion is composed of two parts releasably connected with hook and pile fasteners but lacks any adjustability in the neck area, utilizes uncomfortable elastic bands 42, 44 to conform to the user and does not include removable bullet proof pads or resemble a shirt.
3. U.S. Pat. No. 3,803,639 to Cohen which shows adjusting clasps 10 and 12 which are quite cumbersome to adjust and/or release.
4. U.S. Pat. No. 4,183,097 to Mellian discloses a body armor garment for women which has a very stiff back plate was well as hook and pile fasteners 29, 30 enabling the armor panels to be removed. Its major shortcomings include the fact that it is worn under the clothing and doesn't resemble an ordinary shirt or blouse.
5. U.S. Pat. No. 3,557,384 to Barron, et al. shows an armored vest which is disclosed as weighing "in excess of 20 lbs." and as such must be assumed to have never contemplated the concept of a lightweight bulletproof dress shirt.
6. U.S. Pat. No. 3,452,362 to Korolick, et al. is similar to Barron, et al. in that it discloses a heavy cumbersome vest which is designed with no regard for use as a lightweight dress shirt.
7. U.S. Pat. No. 4,266,297 to Atkins which shows a bullet resistant shirt-like garment. The front receptacle for the ballistic panel is formed by two portions on opposite sides of button fasteners 8 which overlap when the shirt is buttoned to form the entire receptacle. This construction is awkward in that it is difficult to insert the front ballistic panel when the shirt is unbuttoned and equally difficult to do so when the shirt is buttoned up while being worn.
8. U.S. Pat. No. 4,466,135 to Coppage, the inventor herein, shows a bulletproof dress shirt formed of front and back panels connected by hook and pile fasteners with the front portion made to resemble a dress shirt. Both the front and back panels incorporate integral pockets to accept removable bulletproof pads. This shirt is designed to be worn over a normal dress shirt with the collar and tie of that shirt protruding over the bullet proof shirt and is made of standard light weight dress shirt material which, even though comfortable, has no provision for coping with added perspiration occasioned by the tight and relatively non-breathable ballistic material of the bulletproof pads.